The Police Department for Economic Crime of Ho Chi Minh city spotted four trucks carrying tonnes of fake clothing and handbags of world’s famous brands of all types, gathering at the Sheraton Hotel on November 27, 2012. This is very much like a smuggling case. Until now, the authorities have been working on the case but it is very difficult to trace the origin of those products and approach the owners. This fact shows that the management of import and export goods, and intellectual property is still insufficient and having many loopholes. This leads to loss of state tax and benefits of consumers.
Hard to distinguish real goods and fake goods
The consumption fake goods have become so common in Vietnam. There are two forms of intellectual property violation of kinds of famous brand in the world. Firstly, those are products originating from China faking famous brands of Italia. After being imported cheaply, those goods are included in luxury stores in city’s center and sold with the price of thousand dollars per product. Secondly, those are real brand products, but the owners or importers declared value less than the actual tax to evade tax.
According to a leader of Customs Risk Management of The General Department of Customs, Vietnam is currently having large loophole in the management of intellectual property for luxury items, from importing to controlling stage in the domestic market. In fact, thousands of consumers are being misled by luxury stores selling items worth thousands of dollars, which originated from many untrusted sources. As on press, several handbags carried by Vietnamese singers and artists travelling to France and Italy had been confiscated and slitted by customs at the airport because they are not authentic products. Those who bring those items lose not only their money, but also their honor and prestige.
Business owners being indifferent
In the opinion of management agencies, many importers and business owners have been neglecting the protection of intellectual property rights and disregarding their prestige and consumers’ confidence. Mr Bui Thai Quang, Deputy Director of Risk Management Department of the General Department of Customs said that if the company wanted to create credibility to their consumers, they must register brand with Vietnam’s authorities, announce trusted retail stores and provide database. Market management forces, customs and economic police must be trained to be able to identify the brand features, thus to be able to distinguish genuine and fake goods.
More specifically, business owners can make some specific features of products public on their website so that consumers can distinguish themselves. When sufficient database is available, it will be very easy for customs to trace and distinguish authentic and fake items. This will also facilitate price reference. Even when business owners declare to customs much lower price, customs still have price basis from the manufacturer to force businesses to declare the correct price and pay tax.
Improving ability to control goods
Currently, immediate measures include improving the capacity to protect intellectual property rights and anti-counterfeiting. This is possible with highly professional staff facilitated with full information systems. At the same time, management agencies should work together from import stage to circulation stage on the market. It is essential to raise awareness enterprises and business owners in registering intelligence property right to related agencies.
In fact, at present, there is no effective cooperation with famous luxury brands like Gucci, Milan, Lacoste, etc. Therefore, clothing, accessories, watches, footwear, eyewear imported to Vietnam are processed, customs officials do not have a database of goods to identify their price and whether they are genuine or fake.
Mr Bui Thai Quang said that in the U.S., customs forces have complete and sufficient database of famous brands’ goods with image, logo identity, trademark, features to compare authentic and fake items. A number of luxury items such as watches, handbags, sunglasses even have unique code for each product. When in doubt, customs will be able to check the code to know where that item originated and when it was sold.
"U.S. and European Customs are actual effective consumer protectors to prevent counterfeit goods from border gate. Although there have been many attempts, but we are still not able to do this, “said Mr Quang.
Huong Ly
Vietnamese
